


Knights of the New Republic

by NotAHamster (Lorddimertelo2231)



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Canon Rewrite, F/F, Fusion of Star Wars Legends and Disney Canon, Movie: Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Movie: Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Movie: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, anti reylo
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-13
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:01:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,315
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24152476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lorddimertelo2231/pseuds/NotAHamster
Summary: Luke Skywalker's Jedi Order prospers as a guardian of peace in the New Republic, yet it's members are at odds with each other. The Imperial Remnant has consolidated into a state in the Outer Rim - The Imperial Ascendancy.  Some feel that the Jedi shouldn't let these groups remain a threat, while others are content with the peace as a symbol of their success. As the Jedi Council discuss these concerns, a young Sith lands on the planet Jakku in search of an ancient Sith Temple.
Relationships: Rey/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 7





	Knights of the New Republic

Ashlyn huffed as she trudged through the endless dunes of Jakku. She had never been a huge fan of deserts, yet this one took the cake for the worst one in her book. It was devoid of life, of history,even, until the final battle of the civil war all those years ago. The Hutt Cartel had established huge operations on the planet in an effort to salvage the Imperial and Republic ships that dotted the landscape, and was a worse hive of scum and villainy than Tatooine. At least there, she mused, you might find one or two kind souls, but here, everyone was out for themselves.

Unfortunately for her, Jakku was the end of her trail. She'd been researching an old local tale into discovering what had happened to the planet. Back in the days of the Old Republic, while still an unassuming world, it was habitable, but an unknown cataclysm changed everything. She glanced back at her ship, a dented and damaged Nubian J-327, affectionately named the Fury, and cursed herself for holding onto it. While a family heirloom and fairly modern ship, only being built 90 years prior, it was showing it's age far more than most ships as it was designed for comfort, not for long-term use. 

She continued the long trek towards Niima Outpost, glad that the Hutt wouldn't personally be there, she still wasn't fond of the idea of parking her ship closer - it's design would leave it open to pillaging, and she lacked the crew and credits to defend it without getting violent. Having the Hutt Cartel on her tail was not in her plans. The wind picked up as sand was thrown in her face, the dark haired women muttering about just how much she hated sand.

She lost track of time, but eventually reached the outpost, refilling her flask of water quickly from a private source when the owner looked away. She had nothing to barter with, and her Master would have killed her if he found out she'd traded her lightsaber for a drink. Sighing as his face flashed in her mind, she continued towards the main outpost building. Scrap was the most common good sold here, it was everywhere, and smugglers, hermits, and people like Ashlyn came here frequently. Knocking on the shutter, a weary old man opened it, wrinkling his face at her. "What do you want, Ash." he remarked. 

"I was beginning to think you'd forgotten me after our little encounter on Tatooine, Sculge. Working for Niima now?" Ashlyn teased, knowing he resented the Hutt just as much as she did. 

"Pah, of course I am. Now, why are you here?" The man asked as the Sith took a seat.

"Look, I'm here for a temple. The records on Ziost show that this place was once lush and green. I'm trying to discover what happened....That and my ship's engine's cut out again. " She remarked.

Sculge smirked "I keep telling you to get a new ship, no? But a stranded Sith, not good for business, no no." He remarked, glancing at a pile of scrap in his shop "Well, Ash, as much as I'd like to help, we've got nothing here that'll help. Best bet is find one of the local scavengers and barter with them. Heh, or kill them, I know how much you Sith love that."

Ashlyn sighed at that - she glanced around the outpost at the scavengers. The Hutt's worked them to death to scavenge for them, and those who didn't die out in the inhospitable desert looked like they could drop at any moment. Still, she was no stranger to bartering, and usually giving them a few weeks worth of food could convince them to aid her. Glancing back, she pressed for more information. "About that temple?"

"Ash, my dear, you won't find such a thing. Even if one did exist, one of those old ships crushed it. Probably. But who am I to know?" He remarked "Best of luck though, and remember to tell your friends about the discount!" He tapped his sign with a toothy grin before lowering the shutter. Alisa stood up and sighed, beginning to look for a power converter for her engine amongst all the scrapper's stalls.

* * *

Less then an hour later and she was in luck. A girl, who couldn't be more then a few years younger, was dragging a power converter along with her scrap haul. Quickly intercepting her, she smiled "Excuse me miss, but I'll offer you a far better deal for that then where you're heading." she remarked, glancing at the shop she was heading for - Unkar Plutt's. He was a notorious scammer, but the only one who had a food supply, so everyone came to him. "Sixteen ration packs in exchange for you installing that on my ship, and a name." Ashlyn remarked, gesturing at the power converter.

"T..that's more then a month's worth of food." the girl replied.

"Yeah, well, I really need it. Please?" Ashlyn shrugged.

"Deal. My name's Rey, by the way." She said, offering a hand. 

"Ashlyn. Ashlyn Carsen. My ship's about a mile away, if you're ready to go now." She remarked.

"I have a speeder we can take. Why land so far out?" Rey retorted, earning her a smile.

"Thank god, I was dreading another walk. My ship's a old republic design, but it's similar to those that the Ascendancy uses for ferrying important officers. Don't want to risk causing a stir." Ashlyn remarked as Rey led her towards her speeder.

"What, are you with the Confederacy? Republic?" Jedi?" Rey asked, listing most of the major galactic powers as Ashlyn cut her off.

"What makes you think I'm a Jedi?" Ashlyn asked. Rey shrugged, pointing at her belt. A single lightsaber hung off it.

"How do you know I didn't kill a Jedi and take it?" She teased as they got on her speeder.

"Impossible, nobody can kill a Jedi." Rey replied with the naive view of most outside the core worlds.

"If only that were so. But no, this is just a trinket. Helps for intimidating, you know." She remarked. "Doesn't work."

"Smart Move, Miss Carsen." Rey retorted as they climbed onto her speeder, driving off into the desert.

* * *

As the two reached the ship, Rey could see why she was worried. The Ascendancy had indeed used a design very similar, and to the untrained eye, it definitely looked Imperial. Landing in the outpost would've definitely caused panic. Jakku was unofficially neutral space but part of the Hutt Cartel's personal investments, so a threat there could've caused a crisis between the two governments. As the two boarded and Rey was led to the engines, she couldn't help but admire the design. The ship was clearly old, but surprisingly well kept. "Would it not be easier to just buy a new ship? Where'd you get this one, anyway?"

"Family heirloom. Got it from my father." 

"I never knew my family." Rey replied, sighing as she got to work.

"Guessed that by the lack of a last name. How'd you end up on Jakku?"

"I'd rather not talk about it with a stranger." Rey retorted, continuing to work. Giving up, Ashlyn left her to work, coming back in an hour later to find it had been completed.

"I'm impressed. Don't suppose I can tempt you to stay for a meal? My cooking might not be the best, but I'm sure it's better then a ration pack." Ashlyn offered as Rey gave a thumbs up, wiping the grease off her face. As the two settled down to eat not long later, Rey stuffed herself full of Ashlyn's cooking, making the Sith chuckle. "Rey, if you keep eating that fast, you'll throw up, slow down." She smirked.

Rey paused and chuckled "Well, it's amazing, be a worse cook next time!" She teased. "Anyway, what do you do? You're clearly not a scavenger."

Ashlyn shrugged "Bit of everything. Mainly a Archaeologist. Kinda similar, I suppose, just sifting through temples instead of ships. Why I came here, to be honest. Looking for a temple."

Rey paused "A temple? Only temple here is the one under Tuanul." She remarked, making Ashlyn raise a brow. At that very moment, however, Rey felt a wave of fear rush over her as she stumbled, collapsing onto her knees as Ashlyn glanced concerned at her, before it hit her as well. Death and Pain, coming from the north east of their landing site. "S..something's wrong, we've got to head to Tuanul." Rey quickly stated, getting up as Ashlyn grabbed her arm.

"Slow down, we'll take the ship....Did..did you feel that as well?" Ashlyn asked, surprised.

"Yes. What of it?" Rey asked. 

"Rey, I believe you might have the force in you... I can take you to the Jedi, if you so wish."

"Could they help me find my family?" Rey retorted, interested.

"More likely then sitting around here will. " Ashlyn remarked, dreading having to talk with the Jedi again. She'd met with Luke Skywalker, Grandmaster of the Jedi Order, only a few times, yet they weren't exactly pleasant meetings. Still, they had a mutual agreement to keep out of each-others way. She could've revealed her own nature, but the Sith had never had a good reputation, and she didn't want to scare her off. "I'll get you in contact with them, if you'd like."

Rey paused. She was tempted to accept, but her nagging fears over her family held her back. "Let's head to Tuanul. I'll make up my mind." Ashlyn nodded and got up, moving to take off.

* * *

Rey briefed her on Tuanul's background as the Fury flew towards the small town. It had been a Imperial Settlement on the planet, nothing huge, and allowed by the Hutt Cartel's as a memorial site to the dead. The Imperial Ascendancy didn't support the place in any way, and it was considered a neutral ground for remembrance for both the Republic and Ascendancy. From above, it looked nothing of the sort, and Ashlyn quickly landed, both women were shocked at the ruined town. Bodies lay everywhere, homes burnt and a strange presence lingered in the air. A force user had been here, and judging by the lack of weapons on the corpses, it was a massacre. Ashlyn kept her lightsaber hidden as the two explored, Rey looked for survivors, whilst Ashlyn looked for any evidence of the temple. Ashlyn could sense a flicker of life, but it was dimming. Finally, she found it, an Imperial Officer laying on the ground by a building that looked far older then everything else, and she dashed over. 

"What happened here?" She exclaimed, sitting him up. the gash across his chest was deep, and fatal, it was a matter of time before he died. 

"Former Imperial Lieutenant...Ryder." He stuttered, referring to his rank. "Masked...Masked warriors...wielding lightsabers....claimed we were a blight on the galaxy...they killed everyone...." The old man said. 

This wasn't unheard of. A string of murders relating to Imperial Officers had been noticed in the Republic, and wasn't helping the tension between the Galaxies two largest powers. But killing civilians...this was new. Ashlyn helped prop him up. "What did they want?" 

"The temple...Blew the insides to smithereens. " he gestured at the crumbling building behind him. "It.. It was the site of an ancient ritual by the Sith of Old... They searched it for relics...I don't know if they took anything, but if they did, you must find them." He gripped her arm, struggling. "Please...If they're trying to find the secrets of old, they're a risk to the galaxy...." He glanced at the lightsaber, then her. "Y..you're no Jedi, but you're not with them either...We...can't have another war..."

Ashlyn paused. She'd unofficially been in support of neither side, but murdering civilians was one step too far. She'd have to work with the Jedi, for better or for worse. A full scale war was not in her best interests. While the old Sith might've profited from the chaos, she wasn't like them. She had somewhat of a heart. Getting involved wouldn't get her on the good side of either power, but there was no other choice. "I'm a Sith Lord...but...I will help..."

His hand began to relax as he groaned in pain, looking up at her with the eyes of a man who had lived through the bloodiest wars in modern history. "T..thank you, Sith...." And with a sigh, he gave his last breath. Ashlyn knelt down, and shut his eyes. She'd have buried him, but there wasn't time. 

"He's dead, Rey." She remarked as the scavenger came over. "Same lot who've been killing Imperials for just over a year now, it seems. We need to report this, this could lead to war." She sighed, before noticing Rey's eyes brim with tears. "What's wrong?"

"Mr Ryder was a good friend of mine...I can't believe anyone would do this..." Rey replied. 

"The group's been doing it for a point. They feel Imp's are beyond redemption, so have taken it upon themselves to wipe them out. Nobody knows who they are, and it's caused a breakdown in the Treaty of Naboo." She briefed Rey. The New Republic was content to let the Ascendancy exist as Supreme Leader Pellaeon and Chancellor Zash had signed a mutual pact of friendship, ending the contesting claims of both governments, though it was still a rocky agreement, and the group's activities had caused a surge in jingoism on both sides. 

Rey glared at her, and Ashlyn could sense a spark of darkness. "They'll pay. I've made up my mind, we're going to Luke so he can train me."

Ashlyn nodded, and the two returned to her ship, taking off and leaving Jakku behind them.

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed this chapter, leave a comment explaining why.
> 
> English isn't my birth language, so if there are mistakes, please let me know, and I will correct them!
> 
> We'll be seeing Luke soon enough, and I can assure you, there's no green milk.


End file.
